Cartier London Indian-Inspired Diamond Double Clip Brooch

Designed and created by Cartier London in the late 1930s, this convertible double clip brooch is composed of over 17.00 carats of diamonds mounted in platinum. The brooch, convertible into two cllps abstracted from the form of traditional Indian pendant amulets, is set with marquise, baguette and round-cut diamonds, all set in platinum. One of a long tradition of high French jewelry derived from vernacular of Indian art, this glamorous and original jewel is bears the refined and distinctive hand of Cartier designers.

Country: England
Circa: 1930s
Dimensions: 2.375" length x 1.25 width
Materials: 4 marquise-cut diamonds (approximate total weight 3.40 carats, VS clarity and G/H color grade); 30 baguette-cut diamonds (approximate total weight 1.80 carats, VS clarity and G/H color grade); 108 round-cut diamonds (approximate total weight 12.00 carats, VS clarity and G/H color grade); platinum
Signed: Cartier London

Cartier adopted the decorative language of Persian, Arab and Indian design after concerted study of art and artifacts collected by Louis-Francois and his son Louis. Deeply affected by groundbreaking exhibitions in Paris and Munich around the turn of the 19th century, Louis Cartier built a collection of Islamic art and "apprêts", from which his jewelry designers were expected to sketch and draw inspiration. Jacques Cartier, who developed and ran Cartier's London business, traveled extensively in India, befriending Indian families and establishing deep roots in the culture as an artist. Francesca Cartier Brickell's research reveals how Jacques Cartier's sketchbooks attest to the deep influence of Indian design on his artistic sensibility and thus the jewelry of the London branch in the 1920s and 30s. Design influences from these regions continue to inform Cartier's jewelry arts.